ay

interjection

ˈī How to pronounce ay (audio)
Synonyms of aynext
—usually used with following me to express sorrow or regret

Synonyms

See all Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus 

Examples of ay in a Sentence

ay me, we are doomed to listen to that noise all night!

Word History

Etymology

Middle French aymi ay me

First Known Use

1591, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of ay was in 1591

Dictionary Entries Near ay

axunge

ay

ayacahuite

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Ay.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ay. Accessed 24 Nov. 2024.

Copy Citation

Share

More from Merriam-Webster on ay

Britannica English: Translation of ay for Arabic Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about ay

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See All

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Plural and Possessive Names: A Guide

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See All

Popular in Wordplay

See All

8 Words with Fascinating Histories

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments

Birds Say the Darndest Things

10 Words from Taylor Swift Songs (Merriam's Version)

10 Scrabble Words Without Any Vowels
See All

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
little chihuahua dressing like a turkey for thanksgiving
Giving Thanks Quiz Decide which words express gratitude and which gi...